Communication Department News

The Department of Communication added several new faculty members this semester. Communication Intern SHONNA JOHNSTONE conducted a Q&A with the new instructors to help students get to know them a bit better.

The experience. I have not
taught at the university level and so it is all still new. I love the diversity
of the campus.

2.
Describe your teaching style.

I
feel like I focus on being as interactive as I can be in the classroom with the
students. I prefer discussion methods when lecturing and activities that
strengthen what the lecture’s content covered.

3. Tell us about your professional experiences, particularly those not
mentioned in your resume.

Academically
speaking, I haven’t had teaching experience prior to this semester. I have
taught before, but in a different field completely--dance and martial arts are
a little different than Communications. I have assisted graduate students with
research before, but not on a large scale.

4.
What do you see for the future of your field?

Communications
is a very broad field, so I see several different things. It will only continue
to grow, as the skill of communication (verbal, nonverbal, written, etc.)
continues to become more and more valued.

5. What do you love most about what you do?

I
love seeing the “lightbulb” turn on when I’m teaching. Knowing that you have
just aided a person in their journey of learning is an amazing feeling.

Guest speaker Elizabeth Schick, President and owner of Pantheon, spoke to a room-full of students in the Maverick Activities Center Wednesday Nov. 13. The UTA chapter of the Association of Women in Communication, AWC, hosted the event, open to all students for the cost of $5.

Schick, who is a recipient of the Dallas 100 Entrepreneur Award, spoke about her trials, successes and accomplishments within her background in law as well as the development of her current leading company, Pantheon.

Another important thing to remember about attitude is possessing a high EQ, emotional quotient, Schick noted.

“Emotional quotient is the ability to recognize your own emotions, moods and impulses and having the ability to manage them effectively,” Schick said.

B- Be Your Best: “Free yourself from the expectations of what you are not to live in the expectations of who you are,” Schick said.

People can be broken down into three different categories depending on how they respond to different situations.

“You think, you feel or you act first,” Schick said. “If you want to be successful in the workplace I strongly suggest you find a job that lines up with the way you are wired. If you are not allowed to respond the way that you are wired, you will be responding the wrong way.”

Schick says the most important way to be your best and to be successful is to show and not tell.

“Words cannot do what showing someone can,” Schick said.

C- Confidence: “If you’re not confident in your own abilities, no one else will,” Shick said.

In preparation for the meeting, Schick sent out a survey to 20 male colleagues in leadership positions across 10 different industries.

Among the questions asked: “What are three things you see that hold women back in the workplace or hindering them from the success they want to achieve?”

“A majority of the responses came back either specifically saying ‘lack of confidence’ or things that were a result of a lack of confidence,” Schick said.

Schick’s advice is to embrace your femininity and you will achieve success.

Comm Tech major Umear Ali is
listening for a familiar ring on cell phones across campus. Ali made a ringtone
a couple of years ago that has been picked up by iTunes and is now rising on
the charts. At last check, Ali’s iPhoneremix was ranked in the Top 20 worldwide
and No. 1 in Canada.

BCMN grad Vania Salinas has been hired by
Univision-Dallas. Salinas is taking over UTA BCMN grad ReynaCavazos’ position
as morning editor now that Cavazos is moving to full-time anchor/reporter for
the station’s morning show.

Shaun Hudgins, BCMN major, is interning with The Ben and Skin Show this
semester after a summer internship with KRLD/105.3 The Fan working with Texas
Rangers game audio. “Already I've learned a lot and am hopeful and optimistic
about this possibly leading to a career opportunity for me. Right now, I'm
working both internships concurrently and really enjoying it,” Hudgins says. “The
experience I got with both radio production with Lance Liguez and TV production with Julian Rodriguez gave me a huge advantage over other interviewees
and has helped me stand out from other interns as well.”

Evann Crawford, a Comm Studies
major/PR minor, is currently participating in the Ford Grant Research Study
with Dr. Shelley Wigley. The research project is a partnership with Mission
Arlington in an attempt to create diabetes awareness.

PREL major Sara Tariq is a contributing writer
for New York-based VIBE magazine, a contributing writer and editor for a music
blog, MyMusicIsBetterThanYours.com, and is working an an intern for an LA-based
artist management company. Tariq’s debut VIBE article, comparing established names in the electronic dance music industry to
up-and-coming producers who are fairly young and new, can be accessed at
the following link: http://www.vibe.com/photo-gallery/new-era-edm-edm-rockstar-comparison-chart-see-whos-next

PREL
and Communication Technology double major Noe Ponce a
working as a contributing writer for a video game blog website aptly named
thatvideogameblog.com. “It's my job to regularly publish various articles on
the video game industry every week by transforming plain, uninteresting press
releases and industry news, into something fun and exciting that gamers would
want to read, Ponce explains.

PREL major Brandon Demings
is working in UTA’s Health Service Substance Abuse and Health
Promotions Department as the Sr. Intern and Lead Educator. Demings is
responsible for marketing, publicity and community relations for the
organization and also works in peer education and counseling, providing support
to students who may be dealing with substance abuse or alcohol problems.

Alyssa Davis, who graduated with a BA in Broadcasting in Summer 2013, has a new job as a camera operator at KTXD-TV in Addison.

UTA Mavericks got the opportunity to hear Dept. of Communication alumna Orieta Barbetta in her first on-air
promo this month. Barbetta, a BCMN grad, is working for Univision45 in Houston.

Communication Department faculty members are actively engaged in research, writing and professional endeavors outside the classroom.

Dr.
Eronini Megwa traveled to Nigeria Oct. 16 - 26 to present
a paper entitled, "The Changing Mechanisms of Influence: social media
& Reporter-source interplay," at the 16th annual conference of the
African Council for Communication Education (ACCE).

The conference took
place at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria. Dr.
Megwa chaired a workshop session on Oct. 18. He also traveled to collect
data on a research project he initiated in Summer 2012, examining the effects
of social media on the relationship between journalists and news sources in
Nigeria. Preliminary data collecting for the project was conducted from
Oct. 19-24 at two broadcast stations in Lagos [Radio Nigeria and Nigerian
Television Authority (NTA), Ikeja].

An
interview with Communication Lecturer and graphic specialist Roby B. McEuen is included in the Bard
Graduate Center Craft, Art & Design Oral History Project. McEuen’s
daughter, Laurel McEuen, interviewed her dad as part of her master’s work on
the project.

The
Bard Graduate Center Craft, Art and Design Oral History Project is an online
archive of oral history interviews of contemporary craftspeople, artists and
designers. The primary form of the interviews are transcripts, often
accompanied by photographs of interviewees and their work; some also feature
audio and video clips. These makers come from many fields: studio craft in
wood, ceramics, fiber, jewelry, and metalwork as well as multiple media;
architectural, industrial, graphic, fashion, and costume design; and sculpture
and installation art. Topics discussed include background and education,
aesthetics, goals, career choices, and the marketplace.

The
interviews have been conducted by graduate students in the seminar “Craft and
Design in the USA, 1940–Present,” taught by Assistant Professor Catherine
Whalen, who also directs the project. Bard Graduate Center students have been
building this archive since 2007 and are continuing to do so.

McEuen
is listed as a graphic designer and educator and the UTA Department of
Communication is listed in on McEuen’s interview page. The page also includes a
link to McEuen’s Profile page here at UTA.

Don
Flanders, senior account executive with New York-based Rovi Advertising, was the guest speaker at the Nov. 13 Ad Club meeting.

The
Ad club is encouraging UTA Advertising and Communication students to get
involved and enter this year’s Addy Awards, an industry award recognizing

“We encourage you to
take advantage of the student competition of the Addy Awards. This is an opportunity to build your portfolio and get
involved in a major advertising competition,” offers Ad Club president Brittany Anderson.

"Do you have
it?"-The guts, the brains and the heart to make it at the American
Advertising Awards?? Entries are now open and are $45 per entry for students.

Public Relations students enrolled in PR Case Studies classes this semester got to learn about real-world
applications of PR techniques during a Nov. 5 presentation on Crisis
Communication/International PR.

Guest
speakers visited the classroom and provided valuable industry information and
real-world scenarios to the students. Speakers included: Jennifer Lanter, Public Information Officer,Director of Public Relations, Gladney Center for Adoption; Heidi Bruegel Cox, Executive Vice
President and General Counsel for the Gladney Center; and Lisa LeMaster, an entrepreneur and nationally-recognized expert in
media relations and crisis communications strategies and tactics.

Jennifer
Lanter, a UTA Communication graduate who has worked in the
adoption field for over 15 years, has extensive media experience and has worked
with People magazine, Oprah Winfrey
Network, Lifetime, MTV, Washington Post,
New York Times, the Today show and other
media outlets.

Working as an attorney in the adoption field for more
than 23 years, Heidi Bruegel Cox is
a Fellow with the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, has written numerous
articles and appeared on several television programs highlighting adoption. She
serves on several committees focused on family law and child welfare. As a
child advocate, Cox is active in educating the public and promoting legislative
initiatives to protect children and support positive adoption practices. Also
involved with adoption at the national level, she serves as a board member and
secretary for the National Council for Adoption.

Lisa LeMaster, a
business owner for 32 years, has advised and counseled Fortune 500 companies
and CEOs as well as hundreds of privately held enterprises and local, statewide
and national politicians and officeholders. LeMaster, one of the few women who
serves as an advisor and counselor to some of the most powerful people in
sports, including working as consultant to the National Football League for 24
years , regularly assists not-for-profit organizations including hospitals, school
districts, charity groups, churches and advocacy groups. With a 30-plus year
career, LeMaster is recognized as both a national leader in strategic and
crisis communications and a thought leader in the industry.

Hundreds of Communication students packed the UC’s Bluebonnet Ballroom for the Department of Communication’s annual Comm Day Oct. 31. This year’s event, Get off the Bench: Go Pro, provided students with an opportunity to attend workshops, hear guest speakers and network with industry professionals.

Martin Lisius, 1986 UTA grad, served as keynote speaker. Lisius, a noted area “storm spotter,” has produced, directed, and written several television programs relating to severe weather and owns the world’s premier storm footage library.

Many local companies and organizations also participated in the day’s activities including: All Women in Media, American Advertising Federation, Best of Texas/BestBuzz, City of Arlington, Concussion Advertising, CW-33, D Magazine, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Honey Be Natural Magazine, Public Relations Society of America, Ride for the Brand, Social Media Club, Society of Professional Journalists, Steadfast Creative, Strauss Marketing, UTA Career Development Center, UTA Department of Communication, UTA News en Espanol, UTA Radio and UTA Student Publications.

Students also took advantage of the chance to take complimentary professional headshots at the event’s popular photo station, manned by Jeff Williams.

The Department of Communication added several new faculty members this semester. Communication Intern SHONNA JOHNSTONE conducted a Q&A with the new instructors to help students get to know them a bit better.

Diversity! I've always enjoyed learning from people
representing different cultures, and here you have an embarrassment ofriches.

2.
Describe your teaching style.

I have a very open and hopefully engaging/interactive style.
However, my standards are quite high, but if you are clear with expectations,
students end up seeing this as a sign of my respect for their intelligence and
talents.

3.
Tell us about your professional experiences, particularly those not mentioned
in your resume.

Before teaching I was an executive recruiter. This helps me
discuss working in the "real world" especially when I teach
interviewing strategies. However, not noted on my resume is that I put myself
through college as the assistant manager at a movie theatre. One of the
greatest jobs ever...by the way :)

4.
What do you see for the future of your field?

I'm hoping that Communication Studies will figure out how to
brand itself a bit better. There seems to be an outside perception that
we are all just "speech teachers" and that you can learn our
discipline from either real life, or several other areas, like English. I'm
also hoping that a portion of the practitioners will focus on real-work
application of our course objectives. Our students need to make sure that they
can get jobs, and succeed in their lives. Not everyone is going to graduate
school, so while there is a wonderful and important place for theories, it must
balance with practicality.

5.
What do you love most about what you do?

The students and the strong belief, real or imagined, that I
am providing them with a real take-away that should improve not only their
professional lives, but their personal lives as well. It is the beauty of
teaching communication, it is always applicable!

6.
What do you hope to get out of teaching at UTA?

There is such a supportive,
warm and accepting environment here. Not only amongst the students, but with
the faculty as well. This can be quite rare, so I'm ecstatic to be here,
as it already feels like home. I so appreciate the fact that this
university not only understands service learning (which is a major learning
initiative in all of my courses), but supports it, and is in fact a leader in
this area.

Communication technology major Umair Ali didn’t expect to make
the iTunes top 10, much less snag a No.1 spot when he created his first
ringtone as a senior in high school.

“My original thought was that it would simply be something fun to
do as boredom struck me often,” Ali said.

After listening to the iPhone’s classic tone “Marimba,” Ali fired
up his music production software and created what would soon be a hit. After showing
it to his parents and doing some research, iPhone Remix was listed under
“tones” in the iTunes Store.

Ali’s ringtone later grabbed the No.1 spot in multiple countries
like Canada, Italy, the Netherlands and Denmark. Currently it is still listed
as No.1 in Canada above such artists as Drake and Justin Bieber and sits at
No.16 on U.S. iTunes charts.

“My initial reaction was staring in awe,” Ali said. “Breaking the
top ten in the U.S. is no simple feat; it’s the stuff dreams are made of.”

Ali said the first thing he found himself doing after reaching
the top ten was firing up his laptop to create something new.

“My intention when creating the ringtone was to simply have
something in the iTunes Store,” Ali said. “Just being able to say you’re in the
iTunes Store is a big deal in my book.”

Now a junior at UTA, Ali says he’s always tweaking new ringtones
to submit and is pursuing a certification in Emerging Media.

“The ringtone I use on my phone is always the newest one I’ve
created,” Ali said.

The tone can be found in the iTunes application on iPhones by
searching iPhone Remix or Umair Ali, the Google Play store for Android or
Amazon.

Department of Communication students are fortunate to have many internship opportunities available as they reach junior- and senior- year course work. The Department has developed valuable business relationships with many local companies, non-profit organizations and media outlets to provide Comm students with valuable networking and internship possibilities.

This fall, students are interning with a variety of firms. Many students have also landed coveted jobs in their fields of study and are putting their classroom knowledge to work in real-world applications.

Shaun Hudgins, BCMN major, is interning with The Ben and Skin Show this
semester after a summer internship with KRLD/105.3 The Fan working with Texas
Rangers game audio. “Already I've learned a lot and am hopeful and optimistic about
this possibly leading to a career opportunity for me. Right now, I'm working
both internships concurrently and really enjoying it,” Hudgins says. “The
experience I got with both radio production with Lance Liguez and TV production with Julian Rodriguez gave me a huge advantage over other interviewees
and has helped me stand out from other interns as well.”

Evann Crawford, a Comm Studies
major/PR minor, is currently participating in the Ford Grant Research Study
with Dr. Shelley Wigley. The research project is a partnership with Mission
Arlington in an attempt to create diabetes awareness.

PREL major Sara Tariq is a contributing
writer for New York-based VIBE magazine, a contributing writer and editor for a
music blog, MyMusicIsBetterThanYours.com, and is working an an intern for an
LA-based artist management company. Tariq’s debut VIBE article, comparing established names in the electronic dance
music industry to up-and-coming producers who are fairly young and new,
can be accessed at the following link: http://www.vibe.com/photo-gallery/new-era-edm-edm-rockstar-comparison-chart-see-whos-next

PREL
and Communication Technology double major Noe Ponce a
working as a contributing writer for a video game blog website aptly named
thatvideogameblog.com. “It's my job to regularly publish various articles on
the video game industry every week by transforming plain, uninteresting press
releases and industry news, into something fun and exciting that gamers would
want to read, Ponce explains.

PREL major Brandon Demings
is working in UTA’s Health Service Substance Abuse and Health
Promotions Department as the Sr. Intern and Lead Educator. Demings is
responsible for marketing, publicity and community relations for the
organization and also works in peer education and counseling, providing support
to students who may be dealing with substance abuse or alcohol problems.

Ms.
Marti Harvey traveled to Austin Sept. 27-29 to
attend the Texas Tribune Event and to
serve on a panel discussing the future of journalism.

Ms.
Kim Pewitt Jones represented UT Arlington and the Fort
Worth Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) at the
organization’s national convention in Anaheim, CA Sept. 24-27.Ms. Pewitt Jones served as an advisor for UTA
SPJ and an officer for the SPJ Fort Worth Chapter.

Dr. Erika
Pribanic-Smith
presented a paper entitled, “For the Fame Which May Be Forgotten: Two Magazines
and the Fight to Save Mount Vernon, 1855-1860,” at the American Journalism
Historians Association (AJHA) Convention in New Orleans Sept. 24-29.The paper was awarded the Maurine Beasley
Award for outstanding paper in women's history and was runner-up for the Best
Faculty Paper award. Pribanic-Smith also received the Joseph McKerns Research
Grant, a $1,250 award to assist with archival research travel and the
President's Award for sustained and meritorious service to AJHA.

Pribanic-Smith also presenting research insights on
the partisan press on a panel about antebellum journalism and completed various
tasks and attended meetings as Second Vice-President of the organization. The
professor was sworn into office as First Vice-President at the convention.

UTA Department of Communication students, faculty and staff are mourning the death of long-time lecturer Daniel Rudy Bechtel. Mr. Bechtel died Oct. 15 after suffering an apparent heart attack.

Services were held Oct. 17, at St. Stephen Presbyterian Church, 2700 McPherson Ave. in Fort Worth.

Department of Communication Chair Dr. Charla Markham Shaw noted in an email to faculty and staff that Mr. Bechtel had been a part of the Communication Department for eight years, teaching in the advertising sequence. Mr. Bechtel was known as the department’s creative genius and set an inspiring example for his students.

The deadline for donating food to the Golden Key International Honour Society’s 3rd Annual Golden CAN Food Drive is Monday, Nov. 25. The Department of Communication is participating in the annual drive to aid the hungry in North Texas.

A box for nonperishable food items is located in the Communication Main office, Room 118, Fine Arts. Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to donate.

While every donation is appreciated, the following food items support healthy eating habits:

Donations will be picked up Monday, Nov. 25 and will be given to a local food bank.. Awards will be presented to the department with the most total weight of goods donated and the most creatively decorated collection box.

The Society's goal is to surpass the record collection of 464 lbs. Every 10 pounds of food feeds a family of four for a day.

The Association for Women in Communications invites female undergraduate and graduate students across disciplines and departments to a general meeting at noon Sept. 25 in the Fine Arts, Room 409. Refreshments will be served.

The AWC is a student organization that seeks to equip and prepare educated women for successful careers.

"Although we are a communication organization, we invite women in all areas of study to join as communication exists in many forms in every career," explained Chapter President Gemme Campbell.

"We anticipate scheduling professional development seminars and speakers focused on the unique needs of women in the workforce, and providing members with the opportunity to network with exceptional women who have proven records of success," Campbell added.

Students interested in joining may sign-up online through the following link:

“The students learned what types of questions reporters often
ask and how to respond to them in the best possible way,” Wigley said.

During the workshop, students learned to never answer
hypothetical questions or to speculate on what they think might happen in
certain situations. They also learned to avoid saying “no comment” and to look
at the cameras, not the reporters when answering questions. The students were
taught to always answer the reporter’s question but to link answers back to the
message they want to get across.

Following the workshop, the student athletes participated in
mock interviews inside the UTA TV Studio in front of cameras.

“Overall the student athletes did a nice job when we went into
the studio,” Wigley said.

Wigley said news training for athletes is important because they
are often interviewed by members of the media.

“It is important that they present themselves, their team and
the university in the best possible light,” Wigley said.

Wigley will be meeting with UTA Athletics to discuss doing more
media training workshops in the future, especially for incoming freshmen
athletes.

UTA Department of Communication students are getting hands-on, real-world experience through internships this fall.

Through internships, Communication students take classroom learning to practical application. Many upper-level students eligible for internships who meet GPA and course requirements take advantage of the department’s numerous professional relationships with local media, corporations and nonprofit organizations by landing coveted internships each semester. Students approved for internships receive three hours of upper-level course credit.

This semester, Department of Communication students are interning at companies throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Broadcast students are interning for a variety of local media outlets and companies this fall. Melissa Irvin is serving as a media specialist for Farmers Insurance Group. Jairo Moreno is working for The Red Balloon Network in Dallas this semester. Angelina Armendariz is interning with Children's Medical Center in Dallas while Rodney Thrower is gaining experience at K104 Radio in Grand Prairie. Samantha Gutierrez landed a fall internship with Clear Channel Radio in Dallas and Omar Castillon is working at Fort Worth’s Modern Art Museum. BCMN major Shaun Hudgins is interning with CBS Radio 105.3 - The Fan in Dallas.

Public Relations majors are also adding experience to their resumes. Alexis Valdez is working with the Fort Worth Independent School District and Victoria I. Garcia is interning with Clear Channel Radio. Brent Collins is spending the fall semester with Tamika Johnson Events - The Experts, a Grand Prairie-based PR firm.

The first American Advertising Federation (AAF) general meeting of the semester will take place at 4 p.m. Sept. 18 in Room 414 of the Fine Arts Building.

Students will have the opportunity to mingle with fellow ad majors and hear about upcoming AAF projects planned for the semester. This is also an opportunity to gain official AAF membership for the 2013-2014 academic year.

Two artist submissions from UTA Radio will appear on the upcoming 2013
College Radio Day Album due out Nov. 5.

The
Apache 5 and The Breakfast Machine, made up of current and former UTA students,
will each have a song featured on the album. It will be released in conjunction with College
Radio Day.

“Submissions were solicited from college stations around the
country,” said UTA Radio Faculty Advisor Lance Liguez. “We’re thrilled to help
not just one, but two, local artists gain some national and international exposure.”

Both bands have been nominated for various local awards in the past, including
Best New Artist and Best Vocalist.

Oct. 1 marks the third year for College
Radio Day, an event aimed to raise
awareness of the many college stations that operate worldwide by encouraging
people who would not normally listen to college radio to do so.

Last year’s
event included participation by 585 college stations from 29 countries, including UTA Radio.

While some employers are considered to hire predominately engineering and business students, many are also interested in hiring students from many other disciplines as well. Companies attending the Job Fair have with openings in a variety of professional positions, offering students numerous opportunities to work and intern.

The Job Fair is only open to current UT Arlington students and alumni, providing an invaluable networking opportunity. Students should wear suits and bring plenty of copies of their resume.

Congratulations to all of our well-deserving students and to our faculty for mentoring them so well.

The Department of Communication offers a number of departmental scholarships each year for students in all Communication majors. Scholarship applications are due in early March for presentation at the department's Spring Convocation ceremony.

UTA’s chapter of Association for Women in Communications, AWC, is
gearing up for the fall semester. The group’s faculty adviser is new UTA
lecturer Carie Kapellusch.

“The mission of the AWC is to enhance the lives of local
communications students by promoting leadership and positioning its members at
the forefront of the evolving communications era,” Kapellusch said.

Founded in 1909, the AWC is a professional organization that
champions the advancement of women across all disciplines of communication by
providing professional development and networking for its members.

Members will gain the benefits of networking, camaraderie and
professional development which will pay for an AWC membership many times over
throughout students’ communication careers. Membership is open to all
communication majors from marketing to journalism, design to writing,
photography and public relations.

An informational meeting will be held Wednesday Sept. 11 at noon
in the Fine Arts Building Room 414.

Membership cost is $39 annually and is open to everyone with an
interest in growing and developing as a professional.

The UTA chapter of
Society of Professional Journalists will host a fall
kickoff event at noon on Sept. 9 in Room 409 of the Fine Arts building.

All
current SPJ members and communication students interested in joining the
organization are welcome to attend the fall kickoff meeting which will detail
the group’s semester plans, upcoming events and workshops.

Complimentary pizza
will be served. Students should bring their own drinks.

Many Department of Communication faculty members spent the summer months presenting articles and attending conferences.

Several professors have had articles selected for inclusion in a variety of publications in recent weeks.

Dr. Mark Tremayne and Dr. Andrew Clark’s article “New perspectives from the sky: Unmanned aerial vehicles and journalism,” published in May in Digital Journalism, has received national and international media attention.

Dr. Karishma Chatterjee and Dr.Charla Markham Shaw’s article, “Media portrayals of the female condom,” published in the Journal of Health Communication, is the No. 1 article published in the last year in the domain of sexual health according to MEDLINE and BioMedLib.

Julian Rodriguez published a book chapter, “Twitter use among English and Spanish language television stations: A traffic and content analysis of Dallas-Fort Worth local television accounts,” in the edited book Media Management and Economics Research in a Transmedia Environment.

Dr. Mark Tremayne and Milad Minooie (graduate student) will soon see their paper "Opinion leadership on gun control in social networks: Preferential attachment versus reciprocal linking,” in the American Communication Journal. The manuscript was based on a paper presented this summer at ICA.

Faculty and staff also spent summer months making presentations at numerous conferences.

Dr. Erika Pribanic-Smith presented her paper, “Partisanship in the Antislavery Press During the 1844 Run of an Abolition Candidate for President,” at this summer’s annual AEJMC conference in Washington, DC—and won the second place faculty paper award in the History Division. Dr. Pribanic-Smith also had an article of original research published in August in the journal American Journalism entitled "Conflict in the South Carolina Partisan Press of 1829."

Julian Rodriguez is conducting a survey of "dreamers" or undocumented immigrants who are over the age of 18 and living in Texas. His research was featured this summer on Univision/KUVN 23.

Dr. Tom Christie traveled to Budapest, Hungary to present a paper, “Democracy vs. Opportunity: Revealing the Nature of Conflict Communication Following the ‘Arab Spring’,” at the George Gerbner Conference on Communication, Conflict and Aggression.

Dr. Dustin Harp traveled to London to present a co-authored paper, “Where are the women? The presence of female columnists in U.S. opinion pages,” at the International Communication Association. She also presented a co-authored paper, “The double bind of political women: Coverage of Hillary Clinton's performance during the Benghazi Hearings,” at AEJMC that won the top faculty paper award in the Commission on the Status of Women Division.

Dr. Chunke Su presented a co-authored paper, “The combined roles of mastery and performance climates in implementing creative ideas,” at the 73rd Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management in Orlando.

Dr. Shelley Wigley presented two co-authored papers at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) Convention in August: “Processing of persuasive messages” and “Subsidizing Sandy: Courage of Hurricane Sandy.”

The Department of Communication has set a date for this year’s Comm Day. This fall’s event is slated for Oct. 31 and will focus on student internships.

A wide variety of local companies and nonprofit organizations will have representatives on hand to discuss the importance of internships for soon-to-graduate students and to provide information on internship opportunities available for UTA Department of Communication students in all disciplines.

This year’s keynote speaker for Comm Day will be noted storm chaser Martin Lisius. Lisius will share his own internship experiences as well as insight into his dangerous and interesting profession.

Communication students will attend Communication Day with their classes and have the opportunity to engage in a variety of lectures, panels and discussions and meet with industry professionals. Dr. Andrew Clark is this year’s event committee chairman.

WBAP wasn’t the only radio outlet on hand for UTA's recent Sunrise Pep Rally.

WBAP News/Talk 820 AM and 96.7 FM broadcast live for the station’s early morning drive-time show from the College Park District. The Department of Communication’s own student-run station, UTA Radio and UTA Radio.com, also documented the morning’s activities.

Led by Broadcast Professors Andrew Clark and Lance Liguez with Department of Communication engineer Joe Carter’s technical prowess, UTA Radio and UTA Radio.com also broadcast live from College Park as UTA students, faculty and staff showed off their Maverick pride at the 7:15 a.m. event.

UTA Radio students and faculty began set up at 3 a.m. so that the station could go live at 7 a.m.

“This was the first time we did a full, live morning drive block (5-9am)," Liguez said. "While the students were horrified to be up so early, they were eager and committed to producing a quality show."

Hundreds of spirit-filled Mavs turned out for the rally which featured the UT Arlington band, cheerleaders, Wranglers and Blaze. The event was sponsored by the Downtown Arlington Management Corporation, College Town UTA and the Division of Student Affairs and included a complimentary breakfast.

The Department of Communication also presented scholarships to 20 recipients.

The Lloyd Clark Endowed Scholarship, honoring 1942 graduate Lloyd Clark and given to an undergraduate student who intends to follow a news-editorial career. It is the hope of Mr. Clark’s classmates that those receiving the scholarship can match his performance on the Dallas Morning News, Phoenix Gazette, and Arizona Weekly Gazette. Monica Davis is this year’s Lloyd Clark recipient.

Monica Davis (left), 2013 Lloyd Clark Scholarship recipient.

The Donald and Dorothy Bunnell Endowed Scholarship in Communication was established by Donald Bunnell to recognize and celebrate his beloved wife, the late Dorothy Bunnell. The scholarship recognizes outstanding students majoring in any Communication field. Alyxandra Crawford, Evann Crawford and Angelina Armendariz are this year’s Donald and Dorothy Bunnell scholars.

Alyxandra Crawford, one of the 2013 Donald and Dorothy Bunnell Endowed Scholarship recipients.

The Donna Darovich Endowed Scholarship in Journalism was established by friends and colleagues of to honor Darovich at the time of her retirement as UTA’s Director of Public Affairs. This year’s Donna Darovich Scholar is Tiffany Hamm.

The Neva McMurry Reidel Scholarship was established to honor the memory of Neva McMurray Reidel, a UTA student of journalism. Mrs. Reidel’s sister became aware of the excellence of the journalism program at UTA, and created this annual award in 1987 to recognize an outstanding journalism student. Tiffany Hamm is the 2012-2013 Neva McMurray Reidel scholar.

Tiffany Hamm (left), 2013 Neva McMurry Reidel Scholarship recipient.

The Charles Arrendell Family Scholarship, first awarded in 1990, was established to honor Charles Arrendell, distinguished journalist and former chairperson of the Department of Communication. After his sudden death in 1989, Arrendell’s wife, son, and many friends established this scholarship to be awarded to an undergraduate journalism student in his memory. Tiffany Hamm is this year’s Charles Arrendell scholars.

The Murray C. and Nona Poston Journalism Scholarship was established by the Postons, world travelers who spent 20 years traveling and writing articles for the travel industry and various news organizations. In 1979, at age 66, Mrs. Poston graduated from UTA with a journalism degree. Established in the Postons’ wills, this award provides support to future journalists. This year’s Murray and Nona Poston scholar is Lindsey Juarez.

The Mark Holtz Sports Journalism Scholarship was established to honor Texas Rangers’ lead radio announcer for 13 years, Mark Holtz. Holtz was named Texas play-by-play sportscaster of the year eight times and elected to the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990. The Texas Rangers Baseball Foundation awards two scholarships to UTA pursuing careers in Broadcast Journalism. This year’s Mark Holtz scholars are Avery Anderson and Valerie Maedgen.

The Karin McCallum Endowed Scholarship, first awarded in 1996, was established by former students of the award-winning emeritus professor of Speech Communication, Karin McCallum. This scholarship is given to outstanding students majoring in Communication Studies in her honor. Jonathan Blick and Lauren Carle are this year’s Karin McCallum scholars.

The Andrew M. Clark Scholarship, presented in honor of Dr. Clark in recognition to his dedication to student achievement, his vision, and his patience, was established in 2007 by the first graduate of UTA’s Master’s of Arts in Communication program, Danny Woodward. The scholarship is awarded to an outstanding graduate student at the beginning of his/her thesis research. This year’s Andrew M. Clark Scholars is Milad Minooie.

Milad Minooie (left), 2013 Andrew M. Clark Scholarship recipient.

The Phillip Lynn Hall Endowed Scholarship was established to honor 1980 UTA graduate, Phillip Lynn Hall, a lover of music, literature and journalism. Following his unexpected death in 2001, Hall’s family established the scholarship in his memory to be awarded to outstanding students majoring in Communication. Lindsey Juarez is this year’s recipient.

The Douglas Maples Broadcast Scholarship was established in honor of Doug Maples and his passion for radio broadcasting. While taking courses at UTA, Maples fell in love with the station and realized that there was a need for equipment and scholarship support. This scholarship is Maples’ way of giving back to the university where he works and still enjoys learning each day. The Douglas Maples Scholar is Juan Rios.

The George Proctor Endowed Scholarship was established by family, friends, and colleagues to honor George Proctor. An honored member of the family of the Department of Communication for more than 12 years, Proctor was a freelance writer, editor, artist, philosopher and an enthusiastic educator. The George Proctor scholar are Magaly Ayala and Melissa Martin.

The Dallas/Fort Worth Interactive Marketing Association Scholarship is awarded to a student interested in the interactive marketing field actively engaged in courses related to the field. Yong Yim is the recipients of this year's DFWIMA scholarship.

The Society of Professional Journalists Scholarship, established this year, is awarded to students demonstrating their interest and commitment to professional journalist careers. This year's SPJ scholars are Alyxandra Crawford and Vallari Gupte.

The UTA Department of Communication is proud of the accomplishments of its faculty and staff and prides itself on the engaged, passionate personalities that make up the department. Several faculty members are the recent recipients of university and college teaching awards this year.

Mindia Whittier, Public Relations senior instructor, is recipient of the University’s 2013 William S. Ward Endowment Award honoring a non-tenure track faculty member for excellence in teaching.

Established to honor the life and contributions of UT Arlington faculty member Bill Ward, this prize recognizes a non-tenure track faculty member “with an exemplary work ethic, who loves working with students, and who makes a significant impact on enhancing the goals of the University.” Whittier received the award April 22 at the Faculty Awards event.

Dr. Andrew Clark is this year’s recipient of the College of Liberal Art’s (COLA) Gertrude Golladay Award. The award is voted on by students to honor a top instructor.

Radio broadcast instructor Lance Liguez received the COLA Dean’s Accolade Award for the 2012-13 academic year. The award is presented to educators who inspire students to create work of exceptional merit.

Students in Dr. Shelley Wigley's Fall 2012 PR Champaigns class were honored with an Award of Excellence from the Greater Fort Worth Public Relations Society of America Chapter for their work on behalf of Meals on Wheels of Tarrant County.

The students tied with Texas Christian University for the Award of Excellence in the Service Learning Initiative category.

"Unlike TCU, who had a $50,000 grant to support their campaign, our students completed their efforts with no budget," Dr. Wigley said. " I am so proud of them. They went out and raised money/funds to support their campaign efforts."

The Department of Communication offers many opportunities for students to engage in service leaning through their coursework each semester.

This semester, students in Dr. Wigley’s Campaigns class are working with the Downtown Arlington Management Corporation.

On April 11, the students hosted "Get Down," an on-campus event to raise awareness about restaurants, businesses and events in Downtown Arlington.

More than 300 students were served up free food from Five Downtown Arlington restaurants including Babe's, Grease Monkey and Mellow Mushroom. Theater Arlington, College Park Center and Symphony Arlington were also on hand to share information.

Students used giant-sized comment boards to tell city officials what they would like to see in Downtown Arlington.

Communication students have worked with many local companies and non-profit organizations including Meals on Wheels, Children's Hospital, The Reading Corp., the SPCA, homeless shelters, nursing homes and orphanages.

Department of Communication faculty, staff and students are teaming up to help one of their own.

An online donation fund has been set up to assist Communication Studies 2006 grad Charlott Livingston. Ms. Livingston is currently battling lymphoma. Funds raised from the online fund will assist with medical expenses, which are not covered by insurance.

UTA Department of Communication students are getting a first-hand look at the fast-paced world of journalism and broadcast news.

The UTA broadcast majors covered the arrival of President Barack Obama at Dallas Fort Worth Love Field April 24. The President was in Dallas for the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Center. The nation's five surviving presidents attended the center’s dedication. More than 10,000 people gathered on the Southern Methodist University campus amid tight security from local and federal law enforcement.

UTA students, Annabelle Hernandez, Laura Romo and Madeline Amashta, also traveled to Waco where President Obama attended a memorial event to honor those injured and killed in the fertilizer plant explosion that rocked the small, farming community of West last week. The memorial was held on the campus of Baylor University.

Enrolled in TV Reporting class this semester, the students are also very involved in UTA News en Español, explained Julian Rodriguez, broadcast lecturer and faculty sponsor of UTA News en Español.

"Covering these events helps our students work side by side with professional journalists, covering events of national impact," Rodriguez said, "Covering events of this magnitude prepares our students for the pace and professionalism required of broadcast journalists."

The students' stories of the President's arrival and the West memorial aired on Time Warner Cable in Arlington and online at UTANews.com and TV.UTA.EDU.

The University of Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa has invited Associate Professor Eronini Megwa to serve as an external examiner for a doctoral examination of Bevelyn Dube, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Journalism. The title of the dissertation is "Challenges for Journalism Education and Training in a Transforming Society: A Case study of Three Selected Institutions in Post-1994 South Africa".

Dr. Chunke Su recently had a journal article published by IADIS International Journal on WWW/Internet. The title of the article is: “Hub” or “Bridge”? The Effects of Social Network Centralities on Expertise Discovery, Information Retrieval And Allocation, and Use of Digital Knowledge Repositories. A previous version of this paper was selected as one of the Best Papers of the "IADIS International Conference on ICT, Human Beings 2012.”

Melyssa Prince, a graduate of the Department of Communication Master's program, has been named the 2012 Communicator of the Year by the Dallas chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators.

Founded in 1970, The International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) is a San Francisco-based, not-for-profit trade association for business communications professionals with approximately 16,000 members and 100 chapters. The association was founded in 1970.

The Dallas chapter of IABC supports the international organization through conference planning assistance and local recruitment efforts, and serves its members with professional development and networking opportunities. http://dallas.iabc.com/

Chapter membership includes a cross-section of marketing and communication leaders from Fortune 100 corporations,global marketing service firms and boutique agencies.